Mashed Potato Cake with Zucchini and Egg

 If you don't like eggs, stop reading right now!  If you DO like eggs, particularly with runny yolks that add depth and flavor (and protein!) to the foods you eat, continue on.

Today I had a smallish lunch and found myself to be starving by 3. I knew our cupboards were sort of bare and I wanted something quick and delicious.  My usual fallback at this point is egg in the hole.  However, that didn't sound good to me today.

So I ducked my head into the fridge to look at the cheese situation. It was dire. Instead, I saw leftover mashed potatoes, a zucchini on it's last legs and eggs.  I can make something from that right?

This dish was one of those things you might see someone on Chopped start out doing. Trying to mix together three things that don't always meet on a plate.  The potato cake was the only real experiment and it was delicious!  I liked the slight crunch from the potato cake and the runny egg and the additional texture from the vegetable.  If you need a snack, this is one to try!

For One

1 egg
1/2 small zucchini, sliced into thin half moons
scant 1/4 t lemon pepper
1/4 C mashed potatoes
salt
pepper
a tiny bit of butter or oil

1. Heat a small skillet over high. Add the butter and melt it all over the pan. Form the mash into a small patty and place in the pan to one side. On the other side, add the zucchini and lemon pepper and stir to coat. Cook for 2-3 minutes until one side of the cake and zucchini is light brown.

2. Flip the cake and zucchini and cook an additional two minutes.

3. Clear a space in the pan. Break an egg into the pan and let cook until whites are opaque and yellow is cooked but still runny, about 1 1/2 minutes more.

4. Serve in a stack and break the egg to pour al over the potato.

Zucchini Bread

I had a real hankering for some zucchini bread last week as I peanut-buttered up a slice of whole wheat bread for my typical breakfast. Boy, was I tired of peanut butter bread. So I scoured the web for a good recipe and then headed to the farmer's market for some fresh zucchini.

I ended up choosing this recipe from Simple Bites. The results were mixed. My bread wasn't as solid as I expected and I also feel like it wasn't as sweet as I am used to...or something. Honestly I can't place it but it was different. That being said, the bread is still delicious just not the one I was thinking of (and if you know the one I was thinking of please let me know!). The one thing about this recipe though is that it is relatively healthy with hardly any oil.

The only change that I made which I didn't see on the recipe page was to cook the 6 muffins for only 35 minutes (and it should've been less, maybe 30) because they take less time than the loaf.

Italian Shepherd's Pie

This recipe is from a new cookbook I got and has been a big hit -- easy to make and it is very fun to serve in little individual casserole dishes (these are ones that Kath gave me). I think I am using a little more meat and you can decide if you really want to make it into less than six servings. And, the tomato paste in a tube rather than opening a can helps.

Italian Shepherd’s Pie

PREP: 30 MINUTES BAKE: 25 MINUTES STAND: 15 MINUTES OVEN: 375°F

¾ cup shredded pizza cheese or Italian cheese blend (3 ounces)

2 cups mashed potatoes or refrigerated mashed potatoes -- it takes about a lb of potatoes if you make them yourself

8 ounces lean ground beef

4 ounces bulk sweet Italian sausage

½ cup chopped onion 2 cups sliced zucchini or yellow summer squash

1 14 ½ -ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained

½ of a 6-ounce can (1/3 cup) tomato paste

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Paprika (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Stir 1/2 cup cheese into potatoes; set mixture aside.
2. In a large skillet combine ground beef, sausage, and onion; cook until meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain off fat. Stir zucchini, undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, and pepper into meat mixture in skillet. Bring to boiling.
3. Divide meat mixture among six 10-ounce individual casserole dishes or ramekins. Spoon mashed potato mixture into mounds on top of hot meat mixture in dishes. Sprinkle with remaining quarter cup cheese. If desired, sprinkle with paprika.
4. Place dishes in a l5 x 10 x l-inch baking pan. Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings.

Source: diabetic LIVING Cookbook

Sauteed Zucchini

Sauteed zucchini probably isn't a revelation for anyone else, however, it is for me. When I was growing up we sometimes had grilled steak that my dad made on the barbecue. As a special side dish my parents either sauteed mushrooms or zucchini and I loved both.

Then I moved away and discovered that I really didn't like zucchini at all--except when it was grilled. In fact, I am not a big fan of any squash family vegetable.

However, in a moment of weakness at the farmer's market last weekend, I bought 2 zucchinis. I believe my original idea for it was to make a recipe I read about in my Everyday Food magazine called "Linguine with Spring Vegetables" which combines asparagus, zucchini, and sugar snap peas in a creamy tarragon sauce. However, I didn't buy asparagus or peas so that fell through.

Tonight, I was making some Cheeseburger Macaroni and decided to saute some zucchini to add a little green to our meal. I recalled that my mom always used butter when she sauteed instead of oil giving the vegetable a little more flavor. The resulting zucchini was delicious--Joey even had a little! The zucchini's raw powerful bitter flavor was replaced with a slight sweetness. I think I like zucchini now!

Sauteed Zucchini for One
1 small zucchini thinly sliced into coins
2 T chopped onion
1 T butter
salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat butter in nonstick pan until melted
2. Add onion and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes
3. Add zucchini and stir and saute about 10 minutes
4. Serve warm

First Hard Freeze

Fall's first hard freeze in our area of north central Indiana means that all remaining vegetables must be harvested and stored. Cheese sandwiches (usually sharp cheddar on wheat bread) with home grown tomatoes on top, broiled until the cheese is bubbly and the tomatoes hot and soft, are only a memory now.

The abundance of eggplant and zucchini in this year's garden

caused me to search past recipes for inspiration. My sister-in-law Gail's recipe filled the bill.

Gail's Greek Vegetable Skillet Serves 4

1 lb. ground beef

2 med. onions, thinly sliced

2 med. cloves garlic, minced

1/2 lb. muchrooms, sliced

3 med. tomatoes, cut in wedges

1 small eggplant, cubed or sliced depending on type

2 med. zucchini , cut in 1/4 in. slices

1 med. green pepper, chopped ,

1 T. salt, more or less

1 t. oregano, fresh or dried

1 c. cooked rice

1/4 c. chopped parsley

Brown meat, then onions, garlic, mushrooms and cook until tender. Add tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, green pepper, salt and oregano. Cover and simmer 25 minutes stirring occasionally. Stir in rice. Cover and cook 5-10 minutes more. Sprinkle with parsley.

Delicious!

Ratatouille

We've still been getting summer veggies from the CSA, which usually include eggplant, peppers, zucchini and tomatoes. What to do with these? Our friend Pam shared this delicious ratatouille recipe.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. eggplant, peeled if thick-skinned

1 green pepper (or 2)

2-3 large zucchinis

1/3 c. salad oil

1 c. sliced onion

1/3 c. tomato sauce

1/4 t. salt

1 t. thyme

1 clove garlic, minced

3 T. flour

28-oz can whole tomatoes, drained

1 lb jack cheese

Slice eggplant, zucchini, and pepper into thin, circular slices. Saute onion in a bit of oil until cooked but not brown. Add garlic for about 1 minute. Stir in oil, tomato sauce, salt, thyme, garlic, and flour and cook just a bit until it makes a thick sauce. Add drained tomatoes and cook until incorporated into the sauce. Break up the tomatoes while they are in the pan.

Layer in a 13x9 inch glass baking dish: first, 1/2 of the tomato sauce, then 1/2 of the eggplant to cover an entire layer, then 1/2 the zucchini to cover the entire layer, then 1/2 the pepper scattered around. Then put half the cheese and repeat with sauce, eggplant, zucchini, pepper, and cheese on top. You can sprinkle some Parmesan on top of the jack to add a little extra flavor as well.

Bake at 400 for 50 minutes. At 40 minutes, cover lightly with a sheet of foil to prevent burning. Enjoy with bread or served over rice. Makes about 4 servings.

Sorry, I forgot to take a picture after it was baked!